Why do I pay, and where does my money go?

This page contains more information about your registration fees: why you have to pay, and how you can find out what how your money is spent to protect the public.

Why do I have to pay fees?We are a self-funding organisation, and our only source of income is registrants' fees. We are not funded by the NHS or the Department of Health: we are financially independent, which is an important part of maintaining standards for your profession.

Why can’t the government pay?The law states that we can only seek funding from our registrants. We can apply for grants from the Department of Health to help us with our start-up costs and we have done that. (The Department of Health funded our consultation in summer 2002, for example.) But after the first few years this option dries up.

Market research has also shown that independent regulation is preferred by the British public as it has greater credibility than state run regulation.